President Obama re~election campaign 2012 information.

WE CAN’T WAIT: OBAMA ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES TWO STEPS TO HELP BUSINESSES CREATE JOBS, STRENGTHEN COMPETITIVENESS

WASHINGTON, DC -- Today, the Obama Administration announced it is taking two important steps to help U.S. businesses create jobs and strengthen their competitiveness in a global economy.  Through two Presidential Memoranda issued today, the Obama Administration will take steps to speed up the transfer of federal research and development from the laboratory to the marketplace, and it will create Business USA, a one-stop, central online platform where small businesses and businesses of all sizes that want to begin or increase exporting can access information about available federal programs without having to waste time navigating the federal bureaucracy.  These announcements are part of a series of executive actions to put Americans back to work and strengthen the economy because we can’t wait for Congressional Republicans to act. 

“With too many families struggling and too many businesses fighting to keep their doors open, we can’t wait for Congress to take action,” President Obama said.  “Today, I am directing my Administration to take two important steps to help American businesses create new products, compete in a global economy, and create jobs here at home.”

Accelerating Products from the Science Lab to the Marketplace

Breakthroughs in science and engineering create foundations for new industries, new companies, and new jobs.  With world-class universities and federal laboratories, the United States has long led the world in this innovative process.  As other countries begin to challenge American leadership in innovation, America must expand its ability to transfer science and engineering breakthroughs from the laboratory to the commercial marketplace.  Today’s Presidential Memorandum directs all federal agencies with research facilities to accelerate this timeline in three key ways:    

• It directs agencies to streamline and accelerate the process for private-public research partnerships, small business research and development grants, and university-startup collaborations.  This will result in grants to startups being made 50% faster. 

• It gives agencies more flexibility to partner with industry, encouraging them to create new partnerships with local communities, support the growth of regional innovation clusters, and share laboratory facilities with local businesses, among others. 

• It will institute more accountability by directing agencies to develop a five-year plan with concrete goals and metrics to measure progress, including keeping track of how many patents each lab is generating.

Accelerating this timeline will help startups and small businesses around the country create new technologies, create new jobs and grow their companies while making more efficient use of the approximately $147 billion a year that the federal government invests in research and development.  Over the years, federal agencies have supported a number of startups that have gone on to define an industry. Each one of these companies, for example, received a federal research grant:

• Qualcomm, a global American telecommunication corporation that designs and manufactures wireless communications equipment.

• Symantec, a global software giant -- now the largest maker of security software for computers.

• The iRobot Corporation, which designs robots such as the Roomba, for home vacuuming, and the PackBot, for the US military.

Creating a Streamlined, Virtual One-Stop Shop to Help Businesses Grow and Hire

Today, the Obama Administration is also following through on President Obama’s commitment to launch a centralized, one-stop online platform to make it easier than ever for businesses small and large to access services to help them grow and hire.  Today’s Presidential Memorandum directs the Administration to create within 90 days BusinessUSA, a one-stop shop for information regarding federal programs and services relevant to small businesses and businesses of all sizes that want to begin or increase exporting.  
 
BusinessUSA will implement a “No Wrong Door” policy for small businesses and exporters by using technology to quickly connect businesses to the services and information relevant to them, regardless of where the information is located or which agency’s website, call center, or office they go to for help.  And the more federal agencies continue to add content to BusinessUSA to encompass the full range of business programs and services, the more we will be able to reduce the confusing array of websites that exist today.  To ensure that it is oriented towards the needs of the customer, BusinessUSA will be designed, tested, and built with the active feedback of U.S. businesses and relevant online communities and, to the extent possible, will integrate related state and local government services, as well as those of private sector partners. 

To strengthen America’s competitiveness in the global economy, we need to equip businesses with the tools and information necessary to support innovation and job growth in the 21st century.  Through BusinessUSA, small businesses and businesses who want to grow their exports will be able to find and access relevant programs, information, and other services from across the government rather than having to waste time navigating through the federal bureaucracy – thereby further streamlining and coordinating federal programs to reduce costs and provide customer-oriented service.  These changes were called for by the President’s Jobs Council, the President’s Export Council and small and medium sized businesses across the country as part of broad outreach by the Government Reorganization Initiative.

WASHINGTON -- Today, President Obama will deliver remarks in front of Washington, D.C.’s Key Bridge and urge Congress to pass the transportation piece of the American Jobs Act, which will make an immediate investment of $50 billion in our nation’s transportation infrastructure and a $10 billion investment to create a bipartisan National Infrastructure Bank.  Together, these initiatives will put hundreds of thousands of construction workers back on the job rebuilding our roads, rails, and runways.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration, the Key Bridge is in need of crucial repairs and maintenance work.  In order to ensure the Key Bridge remains both safe and functional well into the future, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) proposed a $20 million project to rehabilitate and repair critical portions of the bridge.  However, the city is deferring this maintenance to 2015 due to a lack of funds.  If Congress passes this bill, DDOT could make these critical repairs more quickly and put Americans back to work as early as 2013. 

“Construction workers have been among the Americans hit hardest over the past few years. And that makes no sense when there's so much of America that needs rebuilding. This week, Congress has the chance to do something about it and pass a bill that will put hundreds of thousands of construction workers back to work rebuilding our roads, bridges, airports and transit systems. It's a bill that includes the kinds of ideas both parties have voted for in the past, it's paid for, and its ideas are supported by an overwhelming majority of the American people. It’s time for Congress to act,” said President Obama.

Today, the White House released a report to highlight the importance of rebuilding our roads, bridges, railways, and airports across the nation. The report states, “In order to meet the needs of a growing economy, there is an ongoing need for new investments to maintain, upgrade, and expand the nation’s stock of transportation infrastructure.” Today’s report highlights projects from Arizona, D.C., Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia.

Today, the Administration also announced several common-sense steps it has taken to improve the process of reviewing and approving transportation projects, help cut red tape, and leverage additional private sector funding in order to promote private sector growth and job creation. These steps include:

• Directing the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to award $527 million in competitive TIGER grants by the end of 2011 – months ahead of schedule. The TIGER program puts American workers back on the job by helping to rebuild our nation’s roads and bridges, and working on innovative projects like streetcar and light rail systems. This year, DOT received about 1,000 applications, including at least one from every state. 
• Directing DOT to shorten the application process for the 2012 round of TIFIA funding, which will accelerate projects and put workers back on the job more quickly. TIFIA provides up to one-third of the financing needed for bridge, tunnel, toll, transit, and other large-scale transportation projects.  That means the annual funding level of $110 million in TIFIA funds can support projects totaling up to $3 billion in construction.
• Establishing a Transportation Rapid Response Team to expedite reviews of surface transportation projects. Co-chaired by the Council on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Department of Transportation, the team will identify and implement best practices to improve the transparency, efficiency and effectiveness of environmental review and permit decisions for transportation projects, protecting public health and putting Americans back to work. 

We Can’t Wait: Obama Administration Proposes Historic Fuel Economy Standards to Reduce Dependence on Oil, Save Consumers Money at the Pump
Next phase in national program for light-duty vehicles will save consumers thousands of dollars at the pump while saving billions of barrels of oil, curbing pollution, enabling long-term planning for automakers

WASHINGTON, DC – Building on President Obama’s historic national program, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today formally unveiled their joint proposal to set stronger fuel economy and greenhouse gas pollution standards for Model Year 2017-2025 passenger cars and light trucks.  Cars, SUVs, minivans, and pickup trucks are currently responsible for nearly 60 percent of U.S. transportation-related petroleum use and greenhouse gas emissions.

Today’s announcement is the latest in a series of executive actions the Obama Administration is taking to strengthen the economy and move the country forward because we can’t wait for Congressional Republicans to act.   When combined with other historic steps this administration has taken to increase energy efficiency, this proposal will save Americans over $1.7 trillion at the pump, more than $8,000 per vehicle by 2025.  These combined actions also will reduce America’s dependence on oil by an estimated 12 billion barrels, and, by 2025, reduce oil consumption by 2.2 million barrels per day – enough to offset almost a quarter of the current level of our foreign oil imports.  Taken together, these actions will also slash 6 billion metric tons in greenhouse gas emissions over the life of the programs. 

Today’s proposed standards alone will slash oil consumption by 4 billion barrels and cut 2 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas pollution over the lifetimes of the vehicles sold in those years.

“These unprecedented standards are a remarkable leap forward in improving fuel efficiency, strengthening national security by reducing our dependence on oil, and protecting our climate for generations to come. We expect this program will not only save consumers money, it will ensure automakers have the regulatory certainty they need to make key decisions that create jobs and invest in the future,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “We are pleased that we’ve been able to work with the auto industry, the states, and leaders in the environmental and labor communities to move toward even tougher standards for the second phase of the President’s national program to improve fuel economy and reduce pollution.”

"By setting a course for steady improvements in fuel economy over the long term, the Obama administration is ensuring that American car buyers have their choice of the most efficient vehicles ever produced in our country. That will save them money, reduce our nation's oil consumption and cut harmful emissions in the air we breathe," said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. "This is an important addition to the landmark clean cars program that President Obama initiated to establish fuel economy standards more than two years ago. The progress we made with the help of the auto industry, the environmental community, consumer groups and others will be expanded upon in the years to come -- benefiting the health, the environment and the economy for the American people."

The proposed program for MY 2017-2025 passenger cars and trucks is expected to require increases in fuel efficiency equivalent to 54.5 mpg if all reductions were made through fuel economy improvements.  These improvements would save consumers an average of up to $6,600 in fuel costs over the lifetime of a MY 2025 vehicle for a net lifetime savings of up to $4,400 after factoring in related increases in vehicle cost.  Overall, the net benefit to society from this rule would total more than $420 billion over the lifetime of the vehicles sold in MY 2017-2025.

Today’s action builds on the success of the first phase of the Obama Administration’s national program (2012-2016), which will raise fuel efficiency equivalent to 35.5 mpg by 2016 and result in an average light vehicle tailpipe CO2 level of 250 grams per mile.  These standards are already in effect and saving consumers money at the pump now.  Combined with 2011 fuel economy standards and the standards in effect  for 2012-2016, today’s proposal represents the most significant federal action ever taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve fuel economy.  Taken together, these actions would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by half and result in model year 2025 light-duty vehicles with nearly double the fuel economy of model year 2010 vehicles. 

The national policy on fuel economy standards and greenhouse gas emissions created by DOT and EPA provides regulatory certainty and flexibility that reduces the cost of compliance for auto manufacturers while reducing oil consumption and harmful air pollution.  By continuing the national program developed for MY 2012-2016 vehicles, EPA and DOT have designed a proposal that allows manufacturers to keep producing a single, national fleet of passenger cars and light trucks that satisfies all federal and California standards.  It also ensures that consumers will continue to enjoy a full range of vehicle choices with performance, utility and safety features that meet their individual needs. 

The standards will rely on innovative technologies that are expected to spur economic growth and create high-quality jobs across the country.  Major auto manufacturers are already heavily invested in developing advanced technologies that can significantly reduce fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions beyond the existing model year 2012-2016 standards. In addition, a wide range of technologies are currently available for automakers to meet the new standards, including advanced gasoline engines and transmissions, vehicle weight reduction, lower tire rolling resistance, improvements in aerodynamics, diesel engines, more efficient accessories, and improvements in air conditioning systems.  The standards should also spur manufacturers to increasingly explore electric technologies such as start/stop, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and electric vehicles.  The MY 2017-2025 proposal includes a number of incentive programs to encourage early adoption and introduction of “game changing” advanced technologies, such as hybridization for pickup trucks.

The proposal released today follows President Obama’s announcement in July that the Administration and 13 major automakers representing more than 90 percent of all vehicles sold in the U.S. have agreed to build on the first phase of the national vehicle program.  EPA and DOT worked closely with a broad range of stakeholders to develop the proposal—including manufacturers, the United Auto Workers, the State of California, and consumer and environmental groups.

There will be an opportunity for the public to comment on the proposal for 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register.  In addition, DOT and EPA plan to hold several public hearings around the country to allow further public input. California plans to issue its proposal for model year 2017-2025 vehicle greenhouse gas standards on December 7 and will finalize its standards in January.

To view NHTSA and EPA’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, visit http://www.nhtsa.gov/fuel-economy.

For more information, visit http://www.epa.gov/otaq/climate/regulations.htm or http://www.nhtsa.gov/fuel-economy.